Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: #4 Guest (5)
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Elric had encountered opponents who felt fundamentally different from him as a human only twice before.
The first was his father, Hoven Portman. The second was his friend, Elbus Graham.
His father was a cold-blooded man who sacrificed everything else for practicality.
Elbus Graham was the opposite—a rare breed who sacrificed himself for his convictions.
Facing them, Elric had felt a sense of alienation mixed with a hint of admiration.
Today, he felt those emotions once more.
“I cannot bring harm to the territory just because of the insult I feel. At the very least, a leader must not do that.”
Tiria Weibin was the third.
She was a woman who blended half the practicality his father valued and half the convictions his friend cherished, making her both familiar and utterly incomprehensible.
She instinctively made him realize he could never become someone like her.
That was why Elric held her in reverence.
Unlike him, who had rolled through the mud, she was so noble that he chased after her like a cave dweller pursuing light.
If he had to use a metaphor, she was like a glass artwork.
There was no better comparison for how her beauty made him worry if she might shatter or be worn down by storms.
Scraaaape—
Whenever worries surfaced, he inevitably scratched the desk with his dulled dagger, as always.
Elric stared blankly at the gouge in the desk and replayed her words.
The more he did, the stronger his feelings grew.
He wanted to help her.
Whether it stemmed from pity for her bearing it all alone or self-loathing for what he had become, it didn’t matter.
The key point was that something different from his previous urge to simply leave had begun to sprout within him.
And from that, Elric thought simply.
Rather than analyzing the cause of these emotions, he focused on how to resolve them.
The thought that came to him was, “How can I help?”
Elric was a man who didn’t know how to paint the big picture.
He only knew how to thoroughly crush what was right in front of him so it could never rise again.
Since he couldn’t become like her, what he needed to do was obvious.
Just like with the previous Weibin family matter, he decided to resort to violence closer to the law.
“Sir Polo, may I come in?”
“Eek!”
Crash! Clatter!
Noisy sounds came from inside the room assigned to him.
The door opened right after.
“C-Come in…!”
Elric knew the reason for the trembling voice.
Opening the door revealed a plump man sitting in a chair.
He looked terrified at a glance.
“I came because I want to talk.”
With that, Elric closed the door.
“Or since we know each other, should we exchange greetings first?”
He was certain the man had recognized him for a simple reason.
In the restaurant, the man had kept glancing his way, and he had always stepped forward right when tempers were about to boil over and flip the tables.
How could he not notice such an overt display of fear, knowing what followed?
As expected, Polo wildly shook his head.
And then,
Thud!
He dropped to his knees on the floor.
“I’m sorry for what happened that day! Today was all a coincidence! I didn’t know you were here, and I had no intention of upsetting you! It was just an acci—!”
“Shh.”
Polo hiccuped in fright as Elric pressed a finger to his lips.
“Making a scene would be troublesome. For both of us.”
Tap, tap.
Elric leaned on his cane and moved to the seat Polo had just vacated, sitting down.
The man on his knees looked up at him.
It was an intentional setup.
Intimidation started from eye level.
It was unfortunate for the already terrified man, but Elric planned to use that instilled fear.
*
Polo trembled like an aspen tree, bowing his head.
His worst fear had come true.
The gaze looking down stung. The voice brought back memories of the banquet five years ago, sharp as ever.
“I didn’t call you here out of personal grudge. Honestly, I know I bear some responsibility for my own rudeness that day.”
“Th-That’s…”
“Of course, I have no intention of apologizing. I see no reason to forgive you for humiliating me.”
Polo stiffened.
But the next words were unexpected.
“So let’s set aside our personal grudges and focus on the present. On how today can benefit us both.”
Polo’s head lifted slightly.
Elric continued, his face icily expressionless.
“As you know, I’m not patient. I don’t tolerate insults directed at me well, nor those aimed at what’s mine. That’s what happened today.”
“Y-Yes…”
“The behavior from Armin’s supply officer was distasteful. But I can’t step in directly. If I reveal who I am, wouldn’t the peace of this land shatter?”
It was true.
That was the weight of the name Sword Ghost Kasha.
Kasha was a name that could alter the course of the current western war.
His mere presence was a strategic weapon that could halt a nation’s downfall and shift battlefield advantages.
What if word got out that he was here?
Factions would seek to recruit him, and those harboring grudges would come for him.
The former would be overbearing; the latter, savage.
Recruiters would pressure the Weibins using political leverage.
Avengers would throw away their lives to destroy his possessions.
And the Kasha that Polo knew wasn’t one to endure such things.
The moment Kasha’s name surfaced, this place would become a bloodbath.
Next year’s wheat would grow fertilized by blood.
“I don’t want my vacation interrupted. I want things to pass quietly, but you’re making it difficult.”
Amid it all, one thing became clear: he hadn’t fully left the battlefield.
The cane suggested a vacation due to injury.
“So let’s do this.”
Elric leaned forward.
The closer the distance, the more Polo shrank back.
Rolling his eyes upward, Polo caught the chilling smile in his gaze.
“You’ll have to help me. Of course, it won’t be free. Let’s make it a legitimate deal.”
He extended his hand.
“You didn’t come here to buy wheat? I’ll pay a fair price. So grant me this favor.”
Polo flinched, his body trembling.
The proposal that followed was far from bad for him.
*
The Portman estate had a reception room for entertaining outside guests.
By Elric’s standards, it was the only space in the mansion filled with lavish decorations. To Tiria, it appropriately conveyed noble dignity.
Five people sat there today: the Portman couple and the three western supply officers.
“Then let’s begin discussing the deal.”
Tiria said.
“The amount of wheat for sale is as previously notified. This year’s harvest has been particularly bountiful. We have one condition: can you purchase it all at once?”
For Tiria, bulk sales maximized profit.
Splitting sales across different buyers made wheat distribution cumbersome.
Even in this advanced world, transporting wheat from rural Weibin to the west still required wagons.
That meant hiring transporters, which demanded significant circulation funds.
Those funds multiplied exponentially with split sales.
“As a not-so-wealthy territory, we ask for your understanding on this necessity.”
She finished diplomatically to avoid offending anyone, then gauged the supply officers’ reactions.
‘Disha’s out.’
Distress already showed on his face.
He had likely endured major expenditures in prior territories.
No need to even consider.
Even if he pushed for the deal, the process would falter.
Next, Armin.
“That’s a bit stingy, don’t you think?”
A sly smile played on his lips.
Tiria sighed inwardly.
His leering gaze was unpleasant. His oily tone grated.
A common type.
She buried her emotions deeper.
‘Someone I’ll never see again anyway.’
No reason to react to his stares personally.
This was a moment for business.
Moreover, after instructing Elric to endure, showing emotional shifts would be inexcusable.
Their distance was narrowing bit by bit.
Tiria didn’t want to widen that gap again.
She turned her gaze promptly.
‘The Empire…’
Hard to read.
He had seemed uncomfortable since arriving, and now it was worse.
No, there was a change.
Initially fidgety, now he seemed to be waiting for something.
What was he aiming for?
The thought had just crossed her mind.
“…I-I can purchase the full amount. And I’ll add a condition.”
The Empire’s supply officer, Polo, raised his hand.
“We’ll handle all circulation funds directly from the Empire.”
“Hey!”
Bam!
Armin’s supply officer slammed the armrest.
The Empire officer snorted.
“Got a problem? We’re offering full price.”
“There is! If you do that, wheat prices will…!”
What was happening?
Confusion settled in Tiria.
The Empire’s condition was absurdly generous.
It was wartime to begin with.
Securing rations mattered, but war funds were astronomical beyond that.
In such circumstances, covering circulation costs from distant eastern Weibin to the western Empire? That couldn’t be a mere supply officer’s decision.
Yet his demeanor rang with confidence, ruling out a bluff.
‘He came prepared with that offer?’
No, they had decided to sell to the full-amount buyer just this morning.
News couldn’t have reached Empire command yet.
Information was lacking.
If it was a lie to eliminate rivals, future deals would suffer.
If true, that was problematic too.
Enduring such expenditure just for wheat? Even novices fresh to administration wouldn’t make that mistake.
It meant they suspected other motives in Weibin beyond wheat.
‘What…’
If there was an ulterior motive, what could it be?
The thought was interrupted.
“Then we’ll sell to the Empire. Right, my lady?”
Elric said with a grin.
The atmosphere froze.